The Doha based carrier has been named "Best Traditional Airline" for its outstanding in-flight product and operational excellence at the annual Best Airline Awards, hosted by Pasazer.com.

Pasazer.com is a business portal on airlines and aviation business in Poland. The portal is recognised as a source of information for professionals and passengers.

The Best Airline Awards is held annually and winners are selected by votes from the public; this year’s edition gathered 27,000 internet votes. Winners of additional awards are chosen by a jury of aviation experts, journalists and airport representatives.

Qatar Airways cemented its position as a world leading airline by taking the lead position from 24 other carriers in the category, to take the honours in front of an audience of leading global aviation industry executives who attended the awards, held at the Congress Center in Wroclaw.

The airline also received two additional accolades at the ceremony, for the Route Of The Year in recognition of the Warsaw – Doha start-up and also for the airline’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Akbar Al Baker, who was named “Aviation Industry Manager of the Year.”

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said: “Expanding into Poland has been a focus for the airline for a long time running. We are very pleased with the success of the Warsaw route so far, and we thank the authorities and the Polish travelling public for the strong support we have received.”

Just days later the airline also scooped a prestige award at an event organised by the Polish Airport Authority, where Qatar Airways won the award for “Development of Non-European Flight Connections 2012.”

The awards come just days before Qatar Airways increases its commitment to the Warsaw market by upgrading its schedule from four-times-weekly to daily flights from February 1st.

It is an active time for the airline in Poland as it also gears up for the opening of its European Call Centre based in Wroclaw, which is expected to create over 100 jobs.

Martin Sprongl, Qatar Airways Country Manager Eastern Europe said: “To receive four awards is a fantastic achievement and recognition of our continued commitment to service and quality of overall operations in the air and on the ground.

“To be considered as the Best Traditional Airline by our Polish customers is a true honour; with the Warsaw - Doha route that launched under two months ago, it is fantastic to see such a positive response over that short period, and the route has quickly become one of the airline’s most popular.

Paweł Cybulak, Pasazer.com’s Editor in Chief stressed the strong impact that Qatar Airways has had had on the aviation landscape in Poland within a relatively short period.

“The airline’s strong entrance into Poland has been reflected in the results of the public vote.

“Even though Qatar Airways only commenced operations to Poland in December, the prestigious airline has already won Polish passengers’ recognition. A few weeks were all that was needed for the carrier to dethrone the current leaders - LOT and Lufthansa.

“The jury, consisting of airport presidents, aviation experts and journalists also recognised Qatar Airways by awarding its CEO with the title of ‘Manager the Year’, and naming the route from Warsaw to Doha as ‘Route of The Year,’” said Cybulak.

The awards were well received as a strong vote of confidence from Polish travellers in a short period of time, reinforcing the carrier’s position as a leading airline in the country’s flourishing market for long-haul travel.

One of the world’s fastest growing airlines, Qatar Airways has seen rapid growth in just 15 years of operations, currently flying a modern fleet of 119 aircraft to 124 key business and leisure destinations worldwide.

Over the next few months, Qatar Airways will launch services to a diverse portfolio of new routes, including; Phnom Penh, Cambodia (February 20); Chicago, USA (April 10); and Salalah, Oman (May 22).

Qatar Airways’ first two routes of the year were Ghassim (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) and Najaf (Iraq).

DOHA – WARSAW daily schedule, effective 1 February 2013

Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays

QR980

Depart Doha at 0920 hrs, arrive Warsaw at 1320 hrs

QR981

Depart Warsaw at 1535 hrs, arrive Doha at 2255 hrs

Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays

QR982

Depart Doha at 0230 hrs, arrive Warsaw at 0630 hrs

QR983

Depart Warsaw at 1105 hrs, arrive Doha at 1825 hrs

Notes to Editors

Qatar Airways currently has orders worth over US$50 billion for more than 250 aircraft, including Boeing 787s, 777s, Airbus A350s, A380s and A320 Family of aircraft. In addition to winning Skytrax’s prestigious Airline of the Year 2011 and 2012, Qatar Airways was named Best Airline in the Middle East for the seventh year in a row, and its Premium Terminal at Doha International Airport was named Best Premium Service Airport for the second consecutive year in 2012. Skytrax is the only global independent passenger survey monitoring airline standards and is considered the ultimate benchmark for excellence in the airline industry. In October 2012, Qatar Airways became the first of the major Gulf carriers to officially join a global alliance having been invited into the oneworld group. For more information, visit www.qatarairways.com